Ahhhh citrus fest..... one of my favorite times of year. Living in Wisconsin does not always provide an abundance of diverse citrus with the exception of the month of January and our store brings in all sorts of fresh citrus from the south. My personal favorites are blood oranges and Meyer lemons. The Meyer Lemon is thought to be from China and a cross between a lemon and and a mandarin orange. They are not as tart as a traditional lemon and almost golden in color. I love to make with them because the flavor is so light and sweet. They will not give the the zing of a regular lemon, but give a very soft and sweet citrus flavor to baked goods. One of my favorite recipes are these Meyer Lemon Bars I made last January. This year I was in search of something a little fast that Kellen would enjoy baking and I came across this recipe for Meyer Lemon Mini Muffins from ChezCateyLou. This recipe is so easy and the little muffins are perfect for little hands to enjoy. I kept close to the original recipe, but I used sour cream in place of the greek yogurt because I did not have any greek yogurt on hand. The sour cream worked beautifully and can easily be substituted if you are out of plain greek yogurt or prefer sour cream. I actually made 2 batches of these because they were so popular in our house and Kellen would have eaten them all day if I had let him! The wonderful thing about this recipe is that you easily can use regular lemons in place of Meyer. I imagine the flavor will be stronger, but still delicious!
Today I am headed to the doctor for a well baby check for our #2 and then off to work. It seems that our cold snap is ending and the extreme freeze might subside for a bit. Tonight, we are relaxing at home and making a big pot of Taco Soup to enjoy. I am hoping to save a bit to freeze for an easy meal once the little man has arrived! I am 30 weeks today and in the home stretch! This pregnancy has flown by and I am really trying to enjoy the end. I have been feeling much better cold-wise. Pregnancy wise some of the third trimester symptoms have popped up but are mild (i.e.: leg cramps and ligament pain). Kellen was such a honey last night and if you follow me on Instagram (@ashleylecker) I posted a sweet snap of him cuddling his little brother/belly. He has been getting pretty excited about the baby being born and I hope he feels that way once this little guy is in the outside world! I am sure that the transition will have bumps, but I think we are all really looking forward to it.
Ingredients
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2-3 Meyer lemons, zested then juiced (yield about 2 1/2 tsp zest and 1/4 cup juice)
1/4 cup brown sugar (lightly packed)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and white sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg, and mix until well combined, about a minute. Stir in the flour, baking powder and salt till just mixed. Next, gently stir in the sour cream to the batter along with the lemon zest. Do not over mix.
Spoon the muffin batter into the tin, filling the cups about 2/3 full. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, until the muffins are light golden brown.
Meanwhile, mix together the brown sugar and the meyer lemon juice, until the brown sugar is dissolved.
Remove the muffins from the oven, and brush the glaze over the warm muffins. Remove the muffins from the pan while they are still slightly warm, and enjoy!
Makes about 24 mini muffins.